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Why People With Mental Illness Are Able to Obtain Guns

On Tuesday, President Obama included mental health care in addressing new steps to curb gun deaths. Currently, a major background check loophole, variation in state laws and incomplete record-sharing leave openings for people with mental illness to purchase guns.

They Buy Weapons From Private Sellers

Federal law requires a background check for gun purchases from licensed dealers, but not private sellers at gun shows or elsewhere. Some states have their own laws to close the loophole, requiring a background check or a permit (issued after a background check) for all purchases.

Only 18 states require a background check to buy a gun from any seller.

Mr. Obama’s executive action Tuesday does not expand federal law, but clarifies that some private sellers claiming to be hobbyists exempt from those requirements might need to conduct background checks. The president is also asking Congress for funding to hire 200 new agents and investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and he said the F.B.I. would increase the number of workers processing background checks.

They Fall Under a Broader Category of Mental Illness

According to federal law, individuals cannot buy a gun if a court or other authority has deemed them a “mental defective” or committed them involuntarily to a mental hospital. Only a handful of states prohibit broader categories of people with mental illness from obtaining a gun.

If they have been ordered to outpatient treatment

If a guardian has been appointed to manage their affairs

If they have been voluntarily admitted to a mental hospital

If they have demonstrated threats or been given other certain diagnoses

Their Mental Health Records Are Not Accessible

Mental health records are overwhelmingly under-reported to the federal and state databases scanned during a background check. For example, while the majority of states now have laws that require them to submit records to the F.B.I.’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System, known as NICS, there is little enforcement, and the comprehensiveness of those records vary significantly.

Mr. Obama said Tuesday that the Social Security Administration would start to look at how to link mental health records with criminal background check data. He is also requesting $500 million from Congress to improve basic mental health care.

5,000

4,000

3,000

Mental health records submitted

to NICS per 100,000 residents

2,000

1,000

0

PA

NJ

VA

DE

CA

NY

WA

SC

NE

MI

CO

TX

MN

WV

OR

MO

FL

NC

IA

CT

IL

OH

KY

WI

NM

TN

ID

UT

AZ

ME

KS

MS

NV

HI

MD

DC

IN

AR

GA

ND

SD

LA

AL

VT

OK

RI

WY

MT

NH

AK

MA

More records submitted

Less

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

STATE

STATE

Utah

8,240

280

Pennsylvania

718,334

5,618

Idaho

4,383

268

New Jersey

428,935

4,799

Arizona

17,593

261

Virginia

224,079

2,691

Maine

2,697

203

Delaware

2,112

19,759

Kansas

5,749

198

California

625,267

1,611

Mississippi

4,630

155

New York

303,755

1,538

Nevada

4,201

148

Washington

105,314

1,491

Hawaii

1,923

136

South Carolina

70,829

1,466

7,961

Maryland

133

Nebraska

26,204

1,393

Indiana

6,520

99

Michigan

1,264

125,235

District of Columbia

617

94

Colorado

969

51,900

Arkansas

2,464

83

Texas

250,212

928

Georgia

8,263

82

Minnesota

46,012

843

534

72

North Dakota

West Virginia

15,352

830

South Dakota

187

22

Oregon

766

30,421

Louisiana

908

20

Missouri

663

40,170

Alabama

930

19

Florida

655

130,346

Vermont

24

4

North Carolina

642

63,802

Rhode Island

27

3

Connecticut

19,853

552

Oklahoma

26

1

Ohio

46,753

403

Wyoming

1

3

Iowa

398

12,366

Montana

3

0

Illinois

356

45,833

New Hampshire

0

2

Kentucky

348

15,358

Alaska

0

1

Wisconsin

329

18,915

Massachusetts

1

0

New Mexico

321

6,685

Tennessee

286

18,727

Mental health records submitted

to NICS per 100,000 residents

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

STATE

STATE

Utah

8,240

280

Pennsylvania

718,334

5,618

Idaho

4,383

268

New Jersey

428,935

4,799

Arizona

17,593

261

Virginia

224,079

2,691

More records submitted

Maine

2,697

203

Delaware

2,112

19,759

Kansas

5,749

198

California

625,267

1,611

Mississippi

4,630

155

Less

New York

303,755

1,538

Nevada

4,201

148

Washington

105,314

1,491

Hawaii

1,923

136

South Carolina

70,829

1,466

7,961

Maryland

133

Nebraska

26,204

1,393

Indiana

6,520

99

Michigan

1,264

125,235

District of Columbia

617

94

Colorado

969

51,900

Arkansas

2,464

83

Texas

250,212

928

Georgia

8,263

82

Minnesota

46,012

843

534

72

North Dakota

West Virginia

15,352

830

South Dakota

187

22

Oregon

766

30,421

Louisiana

908

20

Missouri

663

40,170

Alabama

930

19

Florida

655

130,346

Vermont

24

4

North Carolina

642

63,802

Rhode Island

27

3

Connecticut

19,853

552

Oklahoma

26

1

Ohio

403

46,753

1

Wyoming

3

Iowa

398

12,366

Montana

3

0

Illinois

356

45,833

New Hampshire

0

2

Kentucky

348

15,358

Alaska

0

1

Wisconsin

329

18,915

Massachusetts

0

1

New Mexico

321

6,685

Tennessee

286

18,727

Mental health records submitted

to NICS per 100,000 residents

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

STATE

STATE

Utah

8,240

280

Pennsylvania

718,334

5,618

Idaho

4,383

268

New Jersey

428,935

4,799

Arizona

17,593

261

Virginia

224,079

2,691

More records submitted

Maine

2,697

203

Delaware

2,112

19,759

Kansas

5,749

198

California

625,267

1,611

Less

Mississippi

4,630

155

New York

303,755

1,538

Nevada

4,201

148

Washington

105,314

1,491

Hawaii

1,923

136

South Carolina

70,829

1,466

7,961

Maryland

133

Nebraska

26,204

1,393

Indiana

6,520

99

Michigan

1,264

125,235

District of Columbia

617

94

Colorado

969

51,900

Arkansas

2,464

83

Texas

250,212

928

Georgia

8,263

82

Minnesota

46,012

843

534

72

North Dakota

West Virginia

15,352

830

South Dakota

187

22

Oregon

766

30,421

Louisiana

908

20

Missouri

663

40,170

Alabama

930

19

Florida

655

130,346

Vermont

24

4

North Carolina

642

63,802

Rhode Island

27

3

Connecticut

19,853

552

Oklahoma

26

1

Ohio

403

46,753

1

Wyoming

3

Iowa

398

12,366

Montana

3

0

Illinois

356

45,833

New Hampshire

0

2

Kentucky

348

15,358

Alaska

0

1

Wisconsin

329

18,915

Massachusetts

0

1

New Mexico

321

6,685

Tennessee

286

18,727

Mental health records

submitted to NICS

per 100,000 residents

NUMBER OF

RECORDS

PER 100,000

RESIDENTS

STATE

Pennsylvania

718,334

5,618

New Jersey

428,935

4,799

Virginia

2,691

224,079

Delaware

19,759

2,112

More records submitted

California

625,267

1,611

New York

303,755

1,538

Less

Washington

105,314

1,491

South Carolina

70,829

1,466

Nebraska

26,204

1,393

Michigan

1,264

125,235

Colorado

969

51,900

Texas

928

250,212

Minnesota

46,012

843

15,352

West Virginia

830

Oregon

766

30,421

Missouri

663

40,170

Florida

655

130,346

North Carolina

642

63,802

Connecticut

19,853

552

Ohio

403

46,753

Iowa

398

12,366

Illinois

45,833

356

Kentucky

348

15,358

Wisconsin

329

18,915

New Mexico

321

6,685

Tennessee

286

18,727

Utah

8,240

280

Idaho

268

4,383

Arizona

17,593

261

Maine

2,697

203

Kansas

5,749

198

Mississippi

4,630

155

Nevada

4,201

148

Hawaii

1,923

136

Maryland

7,961

133

Indiana

6,520

99

District of Columbia

617

94

Arkansas

2,464

83

Georgia

8,263

82

North Dakota

534

72

South Dakota

187

22

Louisiana

908

20

Alabama

19

930

Vermont

24

4

Rhode Island

27

3

Oklahoma

1

26

Wyoming

3

1

Montana

3

0

New Hampshire

2

0

Alaska

0

1

Massachusetts

1

0

Sources: Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund; Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence